Chapter :: Chapter Fifteen
Amy
The rest of the week went by quickly.We had a carnival at school on Wednesday—the one Gregory and I made decorations for.I swear, the guy seemed to stay far away from me at all costs.When hewasin the same room as me, he avoided my gaze even more than usual.
Was Knox right, and did Gregory have a crush on me?But that was impossible.He’d been working here for a year.Surely he would have picked up the courage to ask me out at some point.
“What’s up with Gregory?”Agnes asked me as we took down the decorations.
So she’d noticed he was different too.I debated telling her everything, but the truth was, Agnes was a work friend.We might have made that pact about dating, but we didn’t share too many details.
“Not sure.”
“Hmm...poor guy seems even more awkward than usual.So, how were your dates?”she asked with a grin.
I shrugged.“Didn’t pan out.”
“You have new ones lined up this week?”
“No, I’m taking a break.”
She pouted.“Already?”With a sigh, she added, “Well, my dates weren’t good either, so I might just follow suit.”
We spoke a bit more about the carnival and what we could repurpose the decorations for, and then I went back to the high school.
* * *
On Friday morning,we were all meeting in the parking lot where the bus was waiting.Since I was a teacher, I made a point to arrive earlier than the students.I was wearing comfy clothing: sneakers, loose workout pants, and a sweater.Gregory had jogging attire on too—a green-and-orange tracksuit.He had a matching orange cap too.I was pretty sure it had been “in” back when my grandparents were younger.
I blinked several times.Vanessa, the other teacher joining us, was wearing jeans.She kept throwing Gregory incredulous glances, as if she couldn’t believe he’d wear something like that.
Knox arrived around the same time as five of the students.Holy shit, the man looked hot.He was wearing jeans, a short-sleeved black shirt, sunglasses, and a leather jacket over his shoulder.I realized that he’d actually thrown the jacket over a backpack.He could have been filming an ad for Calvin Klein or something.
“Dude, I thought they were kidding that you were coming with us,” Joel, one of our students, said.
Knox grinned.“Here I am, in the flesh.”
Joel laughed.“Cool.”
I understood his appeal to the students.He was laid-back and yet extremely successful.
He then looked at me intently.Knox’s sex appeal was through the roof.He was wearing sneakers, too, but even those were fashionable.
“Hey.”Gregory blinked rapidly as he greeted Knox.
Vanessa looked at Knox with an appreciation I instantly recognized.I wasn’t the only one who thought he was sexy.
“I’m Vanessa,” she introduced herself to him.
“Knox Sterling,” he said, shaking her hand.“And we’ve already met,” he said to Gregory.
